Penn Hills track shines, sets school record at Tri-State meet

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, April 20, 2018 | 1:09 AM

Western Pennsylvania's wild April weather has limited the amount of work the Penn Hills track and field team can get outdoors.

However, on a beautiful sunny Saturday at West Mifflin, the Indians showed the program's capabilities at the Tri-State Track and Field Coaches Association outdoor championship by boasting multiple event winners April 14.

The Indians were led by senior Alex Trower, who won the 100- and 200-meter dashes. In the 100, Trower finished with a time of 10.87 seconds, which edged runner-up Mt. Lebanon's Parker Reed (11.06) and Central Catholic's Jahmaine Hatten (11.06).

Trower, who transferred back to Penn Hills after a stint at Central Catholic, broke the school record in the 200 with a time of 21.79. The mark belonged to current girls coach Brandon Ifill, who ran a 21.81 in 2010.

“I was surprised I broke it this early. I knew I was going to break it at some point, but this early provides confidence for the season and how it's going to go,” Trower said.

In the TSTCA outdoor championship, Trower edged Thomas Jefferson's Zach Wagner, who finished in 22.35.

“I still have a lot to work on. Mainly, I need to work on getting in shape and a lot of speed work,” Trower said.

“It's a lot of hard work. These times don't come easy. I have to be patient and keep working hard.”

Joining Trower on top of the podium was senior Emmanuel Mitchell, who finished first in the high jump at 6 feet, 5 inches. Mitchell out-leaped McKeesport's Terron Taylor, who finished at 6-3.

“I know he can get a lot higher than 6-5, but it's nice to know he's getting consistent this early in the season,” coach Lee Zelkowitz said.

In the triple jump, senior Jaden Rouse finished third with a jump of 42-11.25, which was behind Gateway's Courtney Jackson (43-11.25) and South Park's Marco Maffeo (43-9).

Freshman Josiah McCoy-Morah finished fifth in the 400 dash with the time of 52.56. Senior Wesley Trower finished sixth in the 800 with a time of 2:02.46, and senior Damion Brady finished sixth in the javelin (136-8).

The Indians decided to not run in the 1,600 relay because of injury issues with key members of the relay team. Zelkowitz didn't want to risk any unnecessary injuries in the early going of the outdoor season. The Indians hoped to debut the relay team in an invitational at the Butler Invitational, which occurred after the deadline for this story.

The boys team finished in a three-way tie for second place with Baldwin and South Fayette with 46 points. They lost to Butler, who finished with 62.

“This has been one of the worst springs in recent memory. We rely on our strong indoor program because, come March, there's a lot of times you can't get a lot stuff done,” Zelkowitz said.

On the girls side, the Indians had one athlete finish on top of the podium. Sophomore Omokemi Kemi Balogun won the triple jump with a jump of 35-3.75, which was farther than Peter Township's Sarah Heisinger (34-10).

Sophomore Eliza Brennan finished third in the 400 dash with a time of 1:01.09. Brennan finished behind South Fayette's Rachel Helbling (58.11) and Butler's Maddie Tonini (1:00.83).

Andrew John is a freelance writer.

Tags: Penn Hills